NC unemployment rate drops slightly in October

Published: Friday, November 16, 2012 at 12:25 p.m.

Last Modified: Friday, November 16, 2012 at 12:25 p.m.

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina's unemployment dropped slightly in October from a month earlier.

The state Commerce Department released figures Friday showing that the rate dropped to 9.3 percent from 9.6 percent in September. The figures show a significant improvement from a year ago, when unemployment was 10.6 percent in October 2011.

The state still trails the national rate, which was 7.9 percent in October.

The number of people employed increased by more than 43,000 to more than 4.2 million over the month. That's up more than 95,000 in the past year. The major industry with the largest over-the-month increase was leisure and hospitality services, which gained 3,600 jobs.

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